The Earth’s global ecosystem experiences a serious biodiversity crisis and might be
approaching a state shift change of uncertain consequences. Paleobiology, by means of the
study of the fossil record, provides valuable insight on what factors determine
paleobiodiversity dynamics and may lead to abrupt faunal turnover events. This project aims
to study the extrinsic and intrinsic causes of faunal turnover based on the fossil vertebrate
record from the Miocene of the Vallès-Penedès Basin (NE Spain).
The project builds on the working hypothesis that (i) faunal turnover in deep time can be
estimated in spite of the biases imposed by the fossil record; and (ii) the dependence of
turnover rates on either extrinsic (environmental) or intrinsic (biotic) factors can be
determined by investigating whether the former are correlated with diversity metrics,
ecomorphological variables and/or paleoenvironmental indicators. Besides confirming that
diversification/turnover metrics and sampling probability are not correlated, we intend to test
specific hypotheses, such as the correlation (1) between origination and extinction rates as
well as between taxonomic and functional turnover (to test for coordinated stasis); (2)
between paleoenvironmental indicators and taxonomic/functional turnover metrics (to test for
the dependence on abiotic factors); and (3) between diversity/diversification and
taxonomic/functional turnover metrics (to test for the influence of intrinsic factors). The results
obtained from the study of the Vallès-Penedès will be compared with those available from
other Miocene basins.
The Earth’s global ecosystem experiences a serious biodiversity crisis and might be
approaching a state shift change of uncertain consequences. Paleobiology, by means of the
study of the fossil record, provides valuable insight on what factors determine
paleobiodiversity dynamics and may lead to abrupt faunal turnover events. This project aims
to study the extrinsic and intrinsic causes of faunal turnover based on the fossil vertebrate
record from the Miocene of the Vallès-Penedès Basin (NE Spain).
The project builds on the working hypothesis that (i) faunal turnover in deep time can be
estimated in spite of the biases imposed by the fossil record; and (ii) the dependence of
turnover rates on either extrinsic (environmental) or intrinsic (biotic) factors can be
determined by investigating whether the former are correlated with diversity metrics,
ecomorphological variables and/or paleoenvironmental indicators. Besides confirming that
diversification/turnover metrics and sampling probability are not correlated, we intend to test
specific hypotheses, such as the correlation (1) between origination and extinction rates as
well as between taxonomic and functional turnover (to test for coordinated stasis); (2)
between paleoenvironmental indicators and taxonomic/functional turnover metrics (to test for
the dependence on abiotic factors); and (3) between diversity/diversification and
taxonomic/functional turnover metrics (to test for the influence of intrinsic factors). The results
obtained from the study of the Vallès-Penedès will be compared with those available from
other Miocene basins.